Protecting the Rights of Palmdale Workers
If your employer violated your rights at work, you need an employment lawyer who fights exclusively for employees. Abramson Labor Group represents workers in Palmdale and throughout California in cases involving wrongful termination, unpaid wages, workplace discrimination, sexual harassment, retaliation, and more. We work on contingency — you pay nothing unless we win.
Palmdale is a city of approximately 170,000 people in the Antelope Valley region of northern Los Angeles County, widely known as the “Aerospace Capital of America.” The city is home to Air Force Plant 42, where Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works and Northrop Grumman’s Aeronautics Systems division design, build, and test some of the most advanced military aircraft in the world, including the B-2 Spirit and B-21 Raider bombers. Beyond aerospace and defense, Palmdale’s economy includes healthcare, retail, construction, solar and renewable energy, logistics, education, and a growing small business sector. The workforce is approximately 60 percent Hispanic, 25 percent White, and 8 percent Black, with a median household income near $75,000.
Whether you work at a defense contractor, a hospital, a construction site, a retail store, a solar installation, or anywhere else in Palmdale, California employment law protects you. When those protections are violated, we hold employers accountable.
More than 35 years of combined experience. Over 500 five-star Google reviews. Five attorneys recognized by Super Lawyers and Rising Stars. A unanimous jury verdict in a retaliation case.
Call for a free consultation: (213) 493-6300
Wrongful Termination
California is an at-will state, but at-will does not mean your employer can fire you for any reason. Termination is wrongful when it is motivated by discrimination, retaliation for exercising a legal right, refusal to participate in illegal conduct, or a violation of public policy.
You may have a wrongful termination claim if you were fired after reporting harassment or discrimination, after filing a workers’ comp claim, after taking medical or family leave, after requesting a disability or pregnancy accommodation, or after raising concerns about safety, fraud, or other illegal conduct. If the timing of your termination closely follows a protected activity and the stated reason doesn’t match your actual record, the law is on your side.
Damages include back pay, front pay, emotional distress, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees.
Unpaid Wages and Overtime
California requires time-and-a-half for work exceeding 8 hours in a day or 40 in a week, and double time for work exceeding 12 hours in a day. Every non-exempt employee is entitled to these protections regardless of job title, pay structure, or industry.
Wage theft takes many forms: unpaid overtime, off-the-clock work, miscalculated pay, unauthorized deductions, unreimbursed business expenses, late or missing final paychecks, and failure to pay meal and rest break premiums. In Palmdale, these violations affect workers across the city’s industries — aerospace technicians working extended shifts at Plant 42, construction workers paid flat daily rates that eliminate overtime, healthcare workers with improperly calculated hours, and retail and food service employees performing off-the-clock tasks.
When you are terminated, all wages owed — including accrued vacation — must be paid on the date of termination. Every day of delay triggers waiting time penalties of one full day’s wages, up to 30 days. We recover unpaid wages going back three years, plus penalties, interest, and attorneys’ fees.
Meal and Rest Break Violations
California law requires a 30-minute duty-free meal break before the end of your fifth hour, a second meal break before the end of your tenth hour, and a paid 10-minute rest break for every four hours worked. “Duty-free” means you must be completely relieved of all work responsibilities and free to leave the premises. Each denied break entitles you to one additional hour of pay at your regular rate.
In Palmdale, break violations are common in manufacturing and production environments where line schedules and project deadlines override break requirements, in healthcare settings where staffing shortages prevent nurses and aides from leaving the floor, in construction where the workday doesn’t pause, and in retail and hospitality during busy periods.
Workplace Discrimination
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age (40 and older), disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, pregnancy, religion, and military or veteran status. FEHA applies to employers with five or more employees and provides broader protections than federal law.
Palmdale’s workforce is approximately 60 percent Hispanic, 25 percent White, and 8 percent Black. Discrimination based on national origin, language, and ethnicity is a significant concern — particularly in workplaces where the labor force is predominantly Hispanic but supervisory and management positions are not. Age discrimination targets experienced workers during corporate restructuring and layoffs. Pregnancy and disability discrimination occur when employers refuse accommodations or push workers out rather than engage in the interactive process. Patterns of unequal treatment in hiring, pay, promotion, discipline, and termination are all actionable under FEHA.
FEHA damages include back pay, front pay, emotional distress, and punitive damages. There is no cap.
Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment in the workplace is illegal under California law. It includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and any verbal, physical, or visual conduct of a sexual nature that creates a hostile or intimidating work environment.
When a supervisor is the harasser, the employer is strictly liable regardless of whether the company knew. When the harasser is a coworker or third party, the employer is liable if it knew or should have known and failed to take prompt corrective action. You do not need to report to HR before contacting an attorney. California’s Silenced No More Act (SB 331) prevents employers from using NDAs to silence employees about harassment, discrimination, or retaliation.
Retaliation
California law prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who exercise their legal rights. Protected activities include reporting wage violations, filing a discrimination or harassment complaint, taking medical or family leave, filing a workers’ compensation claim, refusing to participate in illegal activity, and reporting safety or regulatory violations.
Retaliation can be overt — termination — or subtle: reduced hours, a worse schedule, reassignment, exclusion from opportunities, sudden negative performance reviews, or a demotion disguised as restructuring. When adverse action follows a protected activity and the employer’s stated reason doesn’t hold up, the law provides a remedy.
Multiple statutes prohibit retaliation, including Labor Code § 1102.5 (whistleblower), FEHA (discrimination and harassment complaints), Labor Code § 98.6 (wage claims), Labor Code § 132a (workers’ comp), and CFRA/FMLA (medical and family leave). Damages include reinstatement, back pay, front pay, emotional distress, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees.
Exempt Misclassification
Many Palmdale employers — particularly in aerospace, defense contracting, engineering, and healthcare — classify salaried employees as “exempt” from overtime. But a job title and a salary alone do not make someone exempt.
To be lawfully classified as exempt in California, an employee must earn at least $70,720 per year (the 2025 minimum) and must spend more than 50 percent of their working time performing executive, administrative, or professional duties as specifically defined by law. If your actual work is primarily technical, production-oriented, hands-on, or non-supervisory — regardless of your title — you may be misclassified and owed years of unpaid overtime.
In Palmdale’s aerospace sector, this issue is especially common among skilled technicians, production coordinators, team leads, quality inspectors, and project support staff who are classified as exempt despite performing predominantly non-exempt work. If you routinely work more than 8 hours a day without overtime on your paycheck, it’s worth a conversation.
Aerospace and Defense Contractor Workers
Palmdale is home to Air Force Plant 42, a government-owned, contractor-operated facility where Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, and other defense contractors design and manufacture military aircraft. Thousands of Palmdale residents work for these private contractors in engineering, manufacturing, assembly, testing, maintenance, and support roles.
Private employers operating in California must comply with all California employment laws — including wage and hour requirements, anti-discrimination statutes, and workers’ compensation — regardless of whether their client is the federal government or the military. Defense contractor employees have the same rights as workers in any other industry. If your employer has violated your rights, you can bring claims under California law.
Additionally, employees who report fraud, waste, or abuse on a government contract may have protections under the California False Claims Act and federal whistleblower statutes such as the Dodd-Frank Act and Sarbanes-Oxley Act, in addition to California Labor Code § 1102.5.
Whistleblower Protection
California Labor Code § 1102.5 protects employees who report reasonably believed violations of law to a government agency, a supervisor, or any person with authority to investigate. Your employer cannot fire you, demote you, or take any adverse action because you made such a report. You don’t need to be right — only reasonable in your belief that a violation occurred.
In Palmdale’s aerospace and defense sector, whistleblower claims arise when employees report safety violations, regulatory noncompliance, government contract fraud, quality control failures, or financial irregularities. The protections are strong, and the damages — reinstatement, back pay, emotional distress, punitive damages, and attorneys’ fees — are substantial.
Workers’ Compensation
Every employer in California must carry workers’ compensation insurance. If you are injured on the job — through a single accident or cumulative repetitive stress — you are entitled to medical treatment, temporary disability, permanent disability, and supplemental job displacement benefits, regardless of fault.
In the Antelope Valley, where summer temperatures routinely exceed 100°F, heat illness is a serious risk for construction workers, outdoor laborers, warehouse employees, and anyone working in facilities without adequate cooling. California’s indoor heat illness prevention standard (effective July 2024) requires employer action when indoor temperatures reach 82°F. Manufacturing injuries, construction falls, repetitive stress, chemical exposure, and vehicle accidents during work are all compensable. Your employer cannot retaliate against you for filing a claim.
Immigration Status and Your Rights
California law is clear: every employment protection applies regardless of immigration status. Labor Code § 244 confirms this. Labor Code § 1019 makes it illegal for employers to use immigration threats as retaliation, carrying $10,000 penalties per violation. In a city that is 60 percent Hispanic with a significant immigrant workforce in construction, manufacturing, and service industries, these protections matter. We serve clients in Spanish and other languages.
Personal Injury
Abramson Labor Group also represents Palmdale residents in personal injury cases, including vehicle accidents on the SR-14 and SR-138, wrongful death, slip and fall injuries, and product liability. If another party’s negligence caused your injury, you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering.
How Our Firm Works
Free consultation. You describe what happened. We identify the legal claims, explain your rights, and tell you what your case is worth. No cost. No obligation.
Investigation. We gather pay records, personnel files, communications, witness statements, and other evidence to build a case grounded in facts and law.
Resolution. We pursue the best outcome through negotiation, mediation, or trial. We have a unanimous jury verdict in a retaliation case and are prepared to take your case as far as necessary.
Contingency only. You pay nothing unless we win. No retainer. No hourly fees. No upfront costs.
Serving Palmdale and the Antelope Valley
Abramson Labor Group represents workers throughout Palmdale and the surrounding communities, including East Palmdale, West Palmdale, the Plant 42 corridor, Rancho Vista, Desert View Highlands, Littlerock, Sun Village, Quartz Hill, and communities throughout the Antelope Valley. We also serve workers in Lancaster, Rosamond, the Edwards AFB area, and throughout northern Los Angeles County.
Our firm is headquartered at 1700 W Burbank Blvd, Burbank, CA 91506, and we represent employees in every county in California. Claims can be filed with the Labor Commissioner or directly in Los Angeles County Superior Court — North District (Lancaster courthouse).
Frequently Asked Questions
If you were fired and the reason doesn’t make sense, you’re not being paid correctly, you experienced discrimination or harassment, or you faced consequences after exercising a legal right, you may have a case. A free consultation is the fastest way to find out.
Wage claims go back three years. Discrimination and harassment must be filed with the Civil Rights Department within three years. Workers’ comp claims are generally one year from the date of injury. PAGA claims have a one-year deadline. The sooner you act, the stronger your position.
Yes. Private employers operating in California must comply with all state labor laws, including wage and hour requirements, anti-discrimination protections, and workers’ compensation, regardless of whether their client is the federal government or the military.
Yes, if you are improperly classified. California requires both a minimum salary of $70,720 per year and that more than half your time is spent on qualifying executive, administrative, or professional duties. If your actual work is primarily technical, production-oriented, or hands-on, you may be misclassified and owed significant back overtime.
Yes. California law protects you from retaliation for exercising your rights. Many of our clients are still employed when they first contact us.
Nothing unless we win. We work entirely on contingency. No retainer, no hourly fees, no costs out of pocket.
Why Palmdale Workers Choose Abramson Labor Group
We only represent employees. Never employers. Your interests are our sole focus.
Proven results. More than 500 five-star Google reviews. Five Super Lawyers and Rising Stars. A unanimous jury verdict. Over 35 years combined experience.
We handle the full range. Wrongful termination, wage theft, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblower claims, misclassification, workers’ comp, and personal injury — under one roof.
We speak your language. We serve clients in Spanish and other languages.
Zero cost unless we win. Contingency. No retainer. No hourly rate. No risk.
Contact a Palmdale Employment Lawyer Today
If your rights were violated at work, the first step is a phone call. Free. Confidential. No obligation. We listen, we evaluate your claims, and we tell you honestly what your case is worth and how we can help.
Phone: (213) 493-6300 Address: 1700 W Burbank Blvd, Burbank, CA 91506 Hours: Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM Website: abramsonlaborgroup.com
Free consultations. No fees unless we win. Serving Palmdale, the Antelope Valley, and all of California.